I was sitting around thinking about the last convention and it occurred to me that it seemed like attendance was down compared to years past. I was only able to attend the last two days this time. It seems like it was a lot easier to make my way from the Kirk Sands room to the lobby. Usually it takes a lot more finesse for me to get around. I know I haven't shed any weight lately ( in all honestly I've put on a pound or two ) and I doubt that I''m getting any more graceful. The only explanatiom I can think of is there were less people. I hope it's just my imagination.

Any opinions? Could attendance be going down? I hope not. I'd like for CASS to be around for a long time to come!

I'm going to try and make it to the C.A.A.S. this year, too. I hope I can get to meet some of y'all in person and say hi. It's great to get to know you on the Chetboard, but I look forward to actually meeting and maybe picking a few songs and having some fun. I always have a great time. The last time I was there was 2003. I always try to play one of the open mike days. It's a real honor to be able to play on the same stage that all those great CGPs and others have played on. Hope to see you guys this year.Ray

It seemed like it was a little down last year to me, but I think that was because Eddie and Phil weren't there.

There were still a lot of people, but it did seem like it was a little less stressful to find a seat during the Friday and Saturday concerts. Still a little stressful, but not as bad as the previous year.

BillB wrote:It seemed like it was a little down last year to me, but I think that was because Eddie and Phil weren't there.

There were still a lot of people, but it did seem like it was a little less stressful to find a seat during the Friday and Saturday concerts. Still a little stressful, but not as bad as the previous year.

Bill B.

Haha I don't think it was that but Phil and I will increase the number by 2 next year!

We usually go to Ellendales for supper on Saturday night and then get a seat near the back for the tribute concert. Good sound, decent view on the projection TVs, and no waiting in line!! 3-4 years ago the back 20-30 rows of seats were half full, last couple years and especially this year they were pretty much empty. Some of that because of the economy I'm sure, and folks who did come to the convention didn't all stay for the final night, again perhaps the economy. But I think there is also a split among members about what the concert should be. I've seen postings here and other places that seemed to indicate it should be only tunes Chet played the way he played them. A few years ago Sonny James talked at some lenght about his early years with Chet. Some folks found that fascinating, and others wanted to hear some music. couple years ago the reinactment of the Chet in Hollywood album was nice but changing performers for every tune was time consuming and took away from the flow of the music. Some folks want to see more of the origins of Chet and his music while others want to see where it is going, and what the current influences are.

All in all the Sat concert must be incredibly tough to program! Between all the well deserved thankyous, and trying to get so many deserving artists on stage, it ends up being a 4+ hour concert with 2+ hours of music. I can see why some folks would skip it after having had several days of opportunities to see and hear all the performers. So maybe the concert attendance is not a good measure of overall attendance. Oh, I'll be there again in 2012!!!!

I'm sure Mark has good info on attendance trends. And, we should all thank him and the other volunteers again and again for all they do! I wonder if there is a simple way to collect and organize comments and suggestions for possible improvements to the convention without bombarding him with 600 emails?? I went to Winfield this year and that is too different for simple comparisons, but I like CAAS way, way, way, more!

I didn't mean to go on so long. Many thanx to Mark and all who make CAAS possible!!!

Well said Ron! How could anyone not appreciate the time that the Pritchers put into making CASS work, both at the show and during the rest of the year. I'm sure they get their share of phone calls, emails, and even old fashioned letters all year long.